Forum:Senate
The Senate is one of the two chambers of the Harvian Islands Estates, the federal legislative branch. Unlike in other nations, the lower chamber or Parliament serves as a room for debating and compromising, and the higher chamber or Senate is where Estates Members vote bills that have passed through the Parliament. All inhabitants are allowed entry to the Senate, though only Estates Members have the right to vote and actively participate. See also: /Accepted proposals/; Rejected proposals & other stuff Category:Forum Category:Estates 006. Declaration of Independance A few weeks ago I created this document, and appended everyone's signatures to it, expecting them to agree with it. I should have allowed it to be voted through properly, and I apologise. Here is the text. If you agree with it, please append your signatures. --Semyon 15:55, October 15, 2010 (UTC) Text Manifesto to the peoples of the Harvian Islands, In the course of decades and even centuries never have the Harvian people lost their desire for independence. From generation to generation have they kept alive the hidden hope that in spite of enslavement and oppression by hostile invaders the time will come to the Isles when they may finally rule their own. Now that time has arrived. In this hour, the Harvian Provisional Parliament, as the legal representative of our land and people, has, in unanimous agreement with Harvian democratic political parties and organizations, and by virtue of the right of self-determination of peoples, found it necessary to take the following decisive steps to shape the destiny of the Harvian land and people. Harvia, within her historical and ethnic boundaries, is declared as of today an independant democratic republic. The independent Republic of the Harvian Islands shall include the districts of Reefs, Leeward and Princeton, Maritima and Northern, and its citizens shall include all residents of the said districts who desire citizenship. In the aforementioned areas the only supreme and organizing authority is the democratically supported Harvian Parliament. The Republic of the Harvian Isles wishes to maintain absolute political neutrality towards all neighbouring states and peoples and expects that they will equally respond with complete neutrality. Until the Harvian Parliament, elected by general, direct, secret, and proportional elections, will convene and determine the constitutional structure of the country, all executive and legislative authority will remain vested in the Harvian Provisional Government created by it, whose activities must be guided by the following principles: #All citizens of the Republic of of the Harvian Isles, irrespective of their religion, ethnic origin, and political views, shall enjoy equal protection under the law and courts of justice of the Republic. #All ethnic minorities residing within the borders of the republic, shall be guaranteed the right to their cultural autonomy. #All civic freedoms, the freedom of expression, of the press, of religion, of assembly, of association, and the freedom to strike as well as the inviolability of the individual and the home, shall be irrefutably effective within the territory of the Harvian Republic and based on laws, which the Government must immediately create. #The Provisional Government is given the task of immediately organizing courts of justice to protect the security of the citizens. Islands of Harvia! You stand on the threshold of a hopeful future in which you shall be free and independent in determining and directing your destiny! Begin building a home of your own, ruled by law and order, in order to be a worthy member within the family of civilized nations! Sons and daughters of our homeland, unite as one man in the sacred task of building our homeland! The sweat and blood shed by our ancestors for this country demand this from us; our forthcoming generations oblige us to do this. Long live the independent democratic Republic of the Harvian Isles! Long live peace among nations! The Provisional Parliament of the Harvian Isles, Harry Walton Vlad Negresco Semyon Breyev Franco Flinstone Comments Does anyone want to add anything? If so please mention it here. --Semyon 15:54, October 15, 2010 (UTC) :It's awesome, I love it. Roi Soleil 15:39, October 25, 2010 (UTC) ::Hereby I sign the declaration of independence, long live the islands of Harvia! Bucu 20:43, November 2, 2010 (UTC) :Long live the Christian Islands of Harvia! A nation in which atheism is frowned upon and christianity warmly embraced. Or not? If not, I'm right back outta here! Dr. Magnus 21:26, November 2, 2010 (UTC) 007. Constitution I have written a constitution, based partly on Sjors' and partly on the things we have discussed here. Take a look: --Semyon 17:53, November 3, 2010 (UTC) Preamble We the people of the Harvian Islands, both Samoans and Americans alike, solemnly swear to be bound by this Constitution and to be governed by it. Article 1 The United Harvian Islands #The United Harvian Islands is a sovereign, independent, unitary and indivisible state. #The United Harvian Islands is a democratic and social state, governed by the rule of law, in which human dignity, the citizens' rights and freedoms, the free development of human personality, justice and political pluralism represent supreme values, in the spirit of the democratic traditions of the Harvian people and shall be guaranteed. #The territory of the United Harvian Islands according to its existing national boundaries shall not be altered. #The United Harvian Islands shall be a democratic republic of the people, to be governed by the people and for the people. #There shall be equality among the various racial groups in the United Harvian Islands. Governing body of the United Harvian Islands #The United Harvian Islands is governed on different levels: ##The federal level encompasses the entire Harvian territory. ###The executive power of the federal level inheres to the Government of the United Harvian Islands. This government consists of the Prime Minister and the Federal Secretaries, and has control over government departments, government institutions and civil services. ###All legislative power inheres to the Estates of the United Harvian Islands. This parliamentary body consists of the Estates Members, who are either democratically elected by the citizens of the United Harvian Islands. Estates may, as the sole body in the nation, write and amend legal matters in the Federal Laws of the United Harvian Islands and the Constitution. ###All judicial power inheres to the Supreme Court of the Harvian Islands. ##The district level consists of four districts with extended powers: Maritima, Leeward and Princeton, Northern and Reefs. ##The executive power of the federal level inheres to the Governor and Deputy Governor of each state, both democratically elected by the citizens of each state. ##The local level, consisting of cities and towns, and the sublocal level, consisting of neighborhoods and hamlets, are governed by the district authorities in combination with the mayors. Capital #The city of Stamadri is the cultural, legislative, and administrative capital and the seat of government. Port Philip is the financial capital and the seat for all other functions. Either of these seats may be moved elsewhere for reasons of force majeure. Article 2 This first Article deals with the election procedures and various legislative powers of the various Governing Bodies of the Harvian Isles. Timing of elections Parliament, Senate, and presidential elections must be held in November and May and will be called by the President. They will occur at the same time and the electoral period will last one week. Campaigning and announcement of candidacies will occur during the previous week. Elections for the district governor will take place in February and August. The Parliament The Parliament is composed of 41 members, elected by the system of proportional representation to Parliament. Parliament must pass all Bills before they are able to pass into law. They must exercise control over the Senate and each member must honestly represent the interests of his constituents, rather than his own or those of his party. Any Member of the Parliament may be withdrawn, if a petition is submitted to the President with the signatures of 500 of his constituents expressing dissatisfaction with the said Member. A by-election must then be called in that constituency. Members of the Parliament are automatically members of the District Council in which their constituency lies. The constituencies are as follows: 1 Bora Scara 2 Midland Island 3 Astria 4 Trinity 5 Leeward Peninsula 6 Stamadri North 7 Stamadri South 8 Princeton Island 9 Leeward Central 10 Leeward South 11 Leeward West 12 Outer Port Philip 13 Reefs North 14 West Rock West 15 West Rock North 16 West Rock Central 17 West Rock East 18 West Rock South 19 Reefs South 20 Apples 21 Washington Island 22 East Leeburg North 23 East Leeburg South 24 Lion Island 25 Little Harbour North 26 Little Harbour South 27 Southern Isles 28 Westville West 29 Westville East 30 Rail Village 31 Leeward Town 32 Waterside 33 Philip's Docks 34 Downtown 35 Harves Hill Inner 36 Harves Hill Outer 37 The City 38 Port George 39 The Airport 40 Dales and Montville 41 Orange Gardens The Senate The Senate is the upper body of the Harvian Government, being composed of 8 members. Of the candidates that stand, the eight that receive the largest number of votes will be elected. Each candidate will be voted for individually, rather than as a member of a party. It will be permitted to vote 'contra' a candidate as well as 'pro'. The value of a contra vote is -1 and the value of a pro vote is +1. Each citizen will be permitted two votes, either two pros, two contras, or one of each. Candidates are not permitted to vote for themselves. It is the responsibility and duty solely of the Senate to amend the Federal Law or Constitution. The President A presidential election shall also be held. Each party may submit one candidate, and independents are also permitted to stand. Each citizen may cast one vote, and the winner will be the candidate with the most votes. The President's function will be head of state, although the role of President will not involve political power. It is however possible for the President to be a member of either the Parliament or the Senate, although not Prime Minister or Secretary. The Cabinet Exactly one month after the elections, a document must be submitted to the President containing the names of a majority of Senators. This document must contain at least the name of the proposed Prime Minister, Deputy Prime Minister and Chancellor, and may also contain promised policies. The President must then invite the Prime Minister to form a government. If the document is not received, the President must call new elections. After the Prime Minister comes into office, he must appoint Senators to the following Secretariats: *Secretariat of General Affairs - Automatically the Prime Minister's responsibility *Secretariat of Culture and Education *Secretariat of Infrastructure *Secretariat of Finance *Secretariat of Foreign Affairs *Secretariat of Industry, Agriculture and Trade *Secretariat of Justice, and Supreme court leader *Secretariat of Tourism and Leisure District elections The procedure for district elections will be the same as that for Senate elections but will only take place in single districts. Citizens may vote in only one district, and candidates likewise may only stand in one district. The citizens must indicate their chosen district three months before the elections are held. The candidate with the largest number of votes will be elected. In the case of a tie, both candidates will be joint governor. The governor will lead the District Council. This council has unlimited power to amend the District Law, but is subject to the rulings of the Senate, the Supreme Court, or the District Court (if supported by the Supreme Court). Article 3 Article 3 deals with legislation. Types of legislation There are three different types of legislation: #Federal Law #Constitution #State Law Federal Law This law is proposed by Senate and then passed by both Parliament and Senate. It must be passed with a majority of 50% in both houses. Constitution The function of the Constitution is to enumerate and limit the powers and functions of the political entities of the Harvian Islands. It may be changed by either a 75% support in both the Senate and Parliament, or a 75% support in a referendum of the entire Harvian nation. District Law The District Law is made by the District Council, led by the District Governor. However, it may be overruled by the Senate. Enforcement The laws will be enforced by the Supreme Harvian Court and the District Courts. The responsibility of the District Courts shall be local matters, petty crimes and breaches of the District Law. The responsibility of the Supreme Court shall be matters pertaining to the national level, major crimes, disputes over the meaning of the Constituation, or appeals against the ruling of a District Court. (Nota bene: what constitutes a major or minor crime is defined by the Government). Comments After we pass a constitution, we can hold elections. Please comment; it may not be complete. --Semyon 17:55, November 3, 2010 (UTC) :WE could also create a system of state secretariats (it is bTW the best if we do that when the site has much contributors) 18:03, November 3, 2010 (UTC) :We could better do 10 constituencies which each could have 4 members 18:39, November 3, 2010 (UTC) :What about a supreme court!?!?!Marcus Villanova 21:19, November 3, 2010 (UTC) ::I added a section. --Semyon 18:54, November 4, 2010 (UTC) ::i see thanks!Marcus Villanova 19:55, November 4, 2010 (UTC) Pro * PRO Anyone BTW interested in promoting the site? 18:02, November 3, 2010 (UTC) * PRO Although I think that some parts could be different... I think it is a good proposal. Hereby my support! Bucu 18:04, November 3, 2010 (UTC) (HCU/SP) *'PRO' If you want to change anything, please say so! --Semyon 18:38, November 3, 2010 (UTC) *'PRO' Yes! Yes! I was begining to think this wikia was dead...! Marcus Villanova 21:13, November 3, 2010 (UTC) *'PRØ' --OuWTBsjrief-mich 17:35, November 4, 2010 (UTC) Contra Question What are we voting about here? Whatever it is, I support it :P --OuWTBsjrief-mich 17:35, November 4, 2010 (UTC) :That's the attitude, me lad! :P --Semyon 17:48, November 4, 2010 (UTC) :: <:o) Yay we have a constitution :) Bucu 19:47, November 4, 2010 (UTC) 008. President is automatically moderator Nowadays, the power is unfairly divided. In such important times of building the country, I only see the leftists sharing all power (Pierlot and Sjors), while the rightist majority does not have an admin at all. It is not in proportion and it does affect the ways of how it is going. If the leftists decide to impose something, the rightist majority can't put a stop to it. See also http://harvian.wikia.com/wiki/User_talk:SjorskingmaWikistad#Admin. An example was the recent edit war at Maritima. Sjors said that Pierlot and he have all power because they founded this site. But that is unreasonable. If someone founds a site (talking 'bout Pierlot) who does not feel anything for responsability, why should he have the power to actually "do what he wants"? It is not logical. I think we can't make them give OWTB, Semyon or me, for example, admin rights. But let's do it this way. The President is chosen by the people. In the accepted proposal above, it is obvious that he won't have a very important task as he cannot be member of Senate or Parliament. Let's give him another function. He is popular, elected by the community, so he has to show some responsibility towards the nation. When the a President is elected, he will get admin rights (moderator). It will create some stability in Harvian politics. Bucu 21:38, November 5, 2010 (UTC) PRO # PRO Bucu 21:38, November 5, 2010 (UTC) # PRO --Semyon 22:36, November 5, 2010 (UTC) CONTRA COMMENTS I agree, but I should maybe point out that the President can be a member of the Senate: "President may or may not be a member of Parliament or the Senate." --Semyon 14:27, November 6, 2010 (UTC) : Oops, my fault, must have overread it. Thanks for pointing out! Bucu 14:35, November 6, 2010 (UTC) : This won't matter even if it passes. Sjors is Admin...I agree that PM should be Moderator automatically.Marcus Villanova 16:29, November 6, 2010 (UTC) :: Of course it will! There is a possibility that Sjors won't be admin anymore after elections are being held, right? Bucu 16:33, November 6, 2010 (UTC) :: No he will be. Marcus Villanova 17:02, November 6, 2010 (UTC) ::: I am sorry, I was confused. I meant that Sjors won't be '''President' after the elections'' ;) Bucu 10:57, November 9, 2010 (UTC) 009. Elections Great, so we now have a mechanism for holding elections. I now propose we fix a date for holding elections, after all, Sjors said on his talk page that he planned to hold them in November. These are the dates I propose: *14th of November: announcement of candidatures and campaigning. *21st of November: elections begin (for Senate, Parliament, and President. Don't forget the Parliamentary candidates and elections will be fictional) *28th of November: voting ends. Sound alright? --Semyon 14:49, November 6, 2010 (UTC) PRO #'PRO' --Semyon 14:55, November 6, 2010 (UTC) #'PRO' Bucu 17:28, November 6, 2010 (UTC) #'PRO' SjorskingmaWikistad 16:16, November 10, 2010 (UTC) CONTRA ABSTAIN COMMENTS First I voted pro, but I have thought a bit about the voting period. I think it is too long. During such a long period of two weeks,irregularities could occur. We are not Lovia, we also have fictional elections... we could shorten the period in my opinion. Then you'll get my full support. Bucu 15:12, November 6, 2010 (UTC) :Fine, I wrote two weeks in the constitution but I can change that. --Semyon 15:36, November 6, 2010 (UTC) ::How many votes would we need to get elected... I don't think we should have actuall elections but fake ones where the coalition wins 65% of the senate and the minor three 35%. We don't have neough people yet. Marcus Villanova 16:27, November 6, 2010 (UTC) :::That's also possible. That we let the elections result in a 62,5%-37,5% victory for the HCU-SP coalition, just like the actual composition of the Estates. There are way too less people, probably, to hold decent elections. There will be real members and fictional members (if possible...) to fill the Senate, Parliament, etc. When new members arrive, they could choose a party and replace a fictive member. How about that? Bucu 16:31, November 6, 2010 (UTC) ::::Well, I think we need elections for democracy. The Parliament is the fictional chamber. (by the way, if we don't get the necessary 8 members of the Senate, I agree we should 'top up' with fictional members. --Semyon 16:56, November 6, 2010 (UTC) :::::@Bucu: I changed the period to one week. --Semyon 16:59, November 6, 2010 (UTC) ::::::Well if anyone becomes a citzen here they can be a estates members. And would get his or her own fictional members. Make it fair 70%-30%Marcus Villanova 17:01, November 6, 2010 (UTC) :::::::I think any citizen can be a member of Parliament, but not the Senate. Seems fair? --Semyon 17:13, November 6, 2010 (UTC) ::::::::Aite! Let's get this done then, we need some action. Bucu 17:28, November 6, 2010 (UTC) Dear Estate Members, please, don't forget to vote on these proposals! It's pretty important. Bucu 18:17, November 7, 2010 (UTC) : Every one should be a member now. Marcus Villanova 23:16, November 7, 2010 (UTC) :: Why if nobody votes? :| Bucu 09:13, November 8, 2010 (UTC) : I don't think I'm entitled to; and I do not really understand the political situation here anyways! :P Dr. Magnus 10:43, November 8, 2010 (UTC) :: Maybe BastardRoyale could explain you what it's all about :P Bucu 14:33, November 8, 2010 (UTC) : I'll ask around, Xavi. Dr. Magnus 17:52, November 8, 2010 (UTC) : In a way you two confirmed your sockpops which in bucu's case is okay he's already been caught but not magnus. Back on track...I vote abstain. But until then everone should have a member!!!Marcus Villanova 21:40, November 8, 2010 (UTC) :: Mind you, Marcus, I haven't confirmed anything I only said "I'll ask around". Why not be light about it? Sometimes I just wanna joke around with al the crazyness going on. :P Dr. Magnus 10:34, November 9, 2010 (UTC) I see. Marcus Villanova 21:26, November 9, 2010 (UTC) : We held elections and I got elected PM! With One vote!!!! NOw is this wikia dead or what? : :It's dead. 12:43, January 1, 2011 (UTC)